Hold You Close
by Pavement Chaser
Summary: This is the result of 'Challenge Me'. Hope you like it! Shannon is jealous of Jack and Kate but will what she does to rip them apart put someone is danger? Jate.
1. Chapter 1

**Challenge: Jack/Kate pairing but with Shannon trying to break them apart. Jack and Kate should be tense and happy respectively, and Shannon should be jealous and possessive. Maybe she could lure Jack into the jungle on the pretest of helping her find something, but on their expedition, Jack is attacked and left fighting for his life by one of the others. It's up to the other survivors to launch a rescue mission-maybe spearheaded by Kate and try to save his life.**

**So there you have it folks! Hopefully I'll do justice to it, Lisa! I'll try. And I want you to tell me honestly of what you think. I'm a pretty easygoing person so I don't get upset over anything that easily. Okay…well…on with the story!**

Kate rolled her eyes at Jack as they packed water bottles into their backpacks. They were taking them down to the beach, just like they did everyday. In fact, they had been "going down to the beach" everyday for a while now.

Kate saw it as a chance for Jack to get away. To just let things go for a while - be himself. She liked that he could to that around her.

"Can you honestly say that you've never tried it?" Jack teased.

The dark headed woman chuckled at him. "I'm serious. I don't like trying new foods. It's kind of scary." She picked her bag up and slung it over her shoulders, waiting for Jack to do the same. "Especially, fried anything."

She watched him with a smile on her face. They had gotten much closer over the time they had spent on the island.

"You ready?" She asked eagerly.

Jack nodded standing up. "Yeah. Let's go."

They looked at each other and smiled and took a step forward before a voice broke in.

"Jack." Someone behind him tried to get his attention. Kate followed his lead by turning around to see Shannon. She was walking toward them with a smile on her face and one of those 'looks' in her eyes. "Where are you going? I've been looking for you everywhere."

The doctor looked apologetically at his walking companion. She just smiled sweetly, letting him know that it was okay.

"Sorry, I've been kind of everywhere today." He lied. He'd been with Kate all morning, but neither of them wanted anyone to know that. "What did you need?"

Shannon played with the top of the water bottle she had been holding. "Nothing really. Just wanted to talk. I haven't seen you in a while." She flipped her blonde hair out of her face.

"Okay." Jack replied. He felt Kate tug at his arm.

"Come on." She nodded. Kate knew that Jack didn't really want to talk to Shannon so she tried to help out a little.

"Umm…Sorry, Shannon. We're heading down to the beach. I'd love to stay and…talk but I need to get the water down to the others."

He waited for Shannon to say something along the lines of… 'Oh, that's okay. I'll just see you later then' but instead her face lit up and she smiled at him.

"What a coincidence! I'm going down to the beach too. Mind if I tag along with you guys?" She looked at Kate with somewhat of a flat glare.

Kate gave her a look back. "Not at all." She answered. Shannon grinned and passed them, starting towards the trail. Jack laid a hand on Kate's back as they started after her; each more exasperated then the other.

Kate looked up at Jack the look on his face was something she wished she could bottle. It made her laugh loud enough that she quickly covered her mouth with her hand. She looked to the doctor once more to chastise him and suddenly couldn't bring herself to do anything. He had a smile on his face that was so genuine that she had to smile back.

………

Shannon was bored out of her mind. She thought that walking with Jack would be fun but Kate had to come along. Now they were talking about doctor stuff and not even half of it made sense to her. It was like the two were speaking a different language.

She breathed heavily. This was not going like she'd hoped. There had to get Jack away from Kate. She just needed to know how.

A smile crept onto her face. She had it. Now she just needed to play her cards right.

"Guys…I'm going to go on ahead. I'll see you later." She interrupted the couple's conversation.

"O…kay." Jack said confused but thankful all at once. He looked down at Kate who just shook her head and shrugged.

"Whatever." She said under her breath.

………

Kate was standing ankle deep in sand by the time sunset rolled around. She was staying the night at the beach so she didn't make an effort to move just yet.

She took in a deep, soothing breath and closed her eyes; everything seemed to disappear. That's when she felt a pair of hands slip around her waist. She leaned back onto Jack behind her.

Jack held her, inhaling deeply; her scent was something he wished he could bottle. It was so unique. 'It's the essence of Kate', he thought.

"What are you doing standing out here?" He asked her quietly.

"Sinking. You should know that by now." The doctor chuckled. That is usually what she's doing when she was alone.

It was back to quiet as the couple just stood there in the ever-growing darkness of night. Little did they know that a pair of eyes was watching them.


	2. Chapter 2

Kate glanced at Jack from across the morning fire. He'd been working since the sun came up. The brunette wasn't even sure what for but she knew not to bother him. She grinned and looked away from him as he returned her stare.

She walked over to him nonchalantly. "Need any help?" She asked with interest.

"Um…" Jack stood up and wiped his forehead off with his hand. "No. Not right now. But I'll let you know if I do." He nodded toward the woman.

There was a short silence. "Okay." She said simply. "I'll be around." Then she walked off. He'd been acting strange today. Kate had no idea why but she figured he just needed some space. Sometimes she worried about him.

………

"Vincent!" Shannon yelled. She trekked through the edges of the jungle where she was sure Jack would hear her. She smiled to herself. "Vincent!" She pleaded.

The doctor came into view as he carried sticks back into the caves. She ran to stop him.

"Jack. Thank god. I need your help." She followed him as he walked.

"What do you need my help for?" He asked somewhat annoyed by her.

"I lost Vincent. Could you help me find him?" She waited for an answer in anticipation.

Jack sighed heavily and took a momentary look around. There were very few people at the caves this morning, at least no one that would help the blonde woman. He looked back to Shannon's excited eyes. "Let's go." He gave in.

"It shouldn't take long." Shannon reassured him. She lead him to where she had 'lost Vincent' with a sly smirk on her face.

………

Kate couldn't find Jack at the caves so she traveled down the beach. It was a rather hot day and she could taste the salt in the air.

She started asking around, whether people had seen the doctor or not. The answer was usually 'not'.

"Rose!" Kate approached her. "Rose. You haven't seen Jack have you?"

The dark woman shook her head with regret. "I'm sorry honey. I haven't seen him in days. I wish I could help."

She walked away from the tall dark headed woman. Kate was getting worried. Out of the forty people on the island at least one of them would have seen him. Kate had a bad feeling.

………

"Are we getting any closer?" Jack asked out of breath.

Shannon halted and turned around swiftly. "This is it." She said suggestively. Then she grabbed Jack's shirt and pulled him into a deep kiss.

It took Jack a minute to realize what and still was happening. He promptly pulled out of the display of affection with hast. "What are you doing?" He asked harshly.

Shannon backed away slightly and demurely tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear. "I like you." She said quietly. "This is the only way I could get you to notice me." She confessed. 'And away from Kate,' she added in her mind.

Jack shook his head. He was more than annoyed now. "Shannon…you can't just…" he moved toward her with steady movement. He wasn't going to hurt her he just wanted to make a point.

"Jack?" Shannon stopped moving backward in defense. Her eyes wide with fear.

The man turned around and saw what the blonde woman was in fear of.

"Hello Jack." Said a voice.

………

Kate sat on a log near one of the fires trailing the beach. It had been hours since she had seen Jack and the worry that had settled in the pit of her stomach was now swelling in her chest.

'Something is wrong,' she thought. 'He's never been gone this long without telling anyone.'

She exhaled comfortably. That's when she heard Shannon.

"HELP! SOMEBODY, PLEASE!" She young woman stumbled onto the beach from the jungle. "Please!" She choked. She was crying-hard.

Kate jumped up to help her. "Shannon? Shannon what's wrong?" She grabbed Shannon to steady her and noticed her white t-shirt had blood smattered on it and the most disturbing thing was a crimson colored handprint already on her arm.

Shannon kept crying. She didn't know how to answer Kate. She didn't know if she could put into words what had just happened. She just kept muttering, "It wasn't part of the plan. It wasn't the plan."


	3. Chapter 3

Kate quickly processed what was going on. Shannon still hadn't told her what happened. She became forceful with the frantic woman.

"Shannon." She said harshly. "Where is Jack?" Kate made sure to enunciate when she spoke so Shannon didn't have to think about it so much.

The blonde just shook her head. "I don't know." She confessed with a sob. "I don't know. They took him."

Kate's hair slid over her shoulder and into her face as she swiftly pushed Shannon over to the fire and sat her down on the nearby log.

"What happened?" Kate asked again.

Shannon hesitated, tears still clung the lining of her eyes. She had calmed some.

She shook her head. "I don't know. They were there…and they grabbed him. Jack tried to get away but…b-but they hit him." She exhaled trying to keep herself under control. "He fell and he didn't get back up. I ran over to him…he was bleeding."

_'They?'_ Kate thought to herself. It was the first thing she noticed when Shannon spoke, was that she refured to a 'they'. But that's not was she asked. "Shannon where did they go?" Kate questioned firmly, trying to keep Shannon's focus.

She didn't answer. Her lip quivered, but she didn't say anything.

Kate was getting frustrated.

"WHERE DID THEY TAKE HIM?"

"I DON'T KNOW!" Shannon screamed right back. She started to cry again. "I don't know." Her voice was nothing but a whimper.

Kate felt like crying at that moment as well. Jack was gone? How could he be? Where would they have taken him? Who are '_they_'?

**Okay…I know, short chapter but it was still kind of left over from last chapter and it doesn't quite fit with the next chapter so I had to put it by itself. I really hope all of you are enjoying the story. I know I'm having a good time writing it. Thanks again to all of you who reviewed and to those of you reading…and not reviewing…I know it's kind of a pain in the ass but it take all of thirty seconds to type the word 'good' in that little box. And it means so much to me. Okay…I'll stop now. Once again, thanks for reading. I'll post another chapter sometime this weekend. **

**Katy**


	4. Chapter 4

After Kate had calmed down some she went off to work. She had to get Jack back. The brunette had no idea how she was going to go about saving him but she felt calling…like she had to do it.

"Sayid." She walked up behind the Arabian man. "I need your help." Sayid looked at her with confusion and concern in his eyes. "Jack was taken by someone and we need to get him back."

The man nodded and asked how he could help.

"We need more people for a search party and…" she trailed off. She shook her head. "I really don't know what I'm doing."

"It's alright." Sayid comforted. "Do you know where he was taken?"

"No, but Shannon does. She's going to take us there."

Sayid nodded. "I'll help you."

………

Pain. Sharp pain; pain in the back of his neck. Jack sat up slowly but he didn't open his eyes. His head had never hurt this bad before in his life.

He laid his hand on where it hurt the most and noticed it was sticky, meaning it was probably bleeding.

He let out a sigh of ill will.

"I would move to much if I were you." Came a female voice from in front of him.

Jack opened his eyes slowly so that they could adjust to the light…but there wasn't a lot of light to adjust to. He looked around.

He was in a small room made of concrete. The doctor noticed he was sitting on a grungy old bed and in the corner was a table with a lamp on it.

These were the only pieces of furniture in the room, except for the chair sitting across from him, which held a woman.

"Who are you?" He remained calm.

She sighed. "I can't tell you just yet. For now, Missy will do." She got up, revealing her rather lengthy body. She was a good height, had light brown hair from what he observed and she was wearing normal clothing: a pair of jeans and black t-shirt.

"What do you want with me?" Jack asked

The woman, Missy, just shook her head. "That's for the boss to tell you. Not me." Then she walked over to him and pulled a first aid kit out from under the bed. "Now, let's fix your head shall we." She took out peroxide and gauze. "Oh, and sorry I hit you so hard. You're a lot stronger than you look." She laughed a small laugh.

Jack was about as confused as a man could get at that particular moment. He assumed he was going to have to talk to this 'Boss' person if he wanted answers because Missy wasn't going to give him any.

**A/N: Sorry, I'm a lair. I told you guys I would update over the weekend and I didn't. But now I've got spring break coming up here so you guys may have to hold off until Friday and then I can write whenever I want! Yay-ness! Review!**


	5. Chapter 5

"Come on." Missy pretty much commanded him. Jack followed her obediently.

He was taking careful note of where he was going. He was a stranger in this place and he needed to be aware of his surroundings.

The walls were cement with paintings on them; much like the mural in the hatch. Every once in a while they would come across a door but the door would be solid…no windows.

Missy was taking him to 'Boss', whoever he or she was. Jack was curious as to why they wanted him, what they were going to do with him, and more importantly, _how_ they were going to make him do it.

Jack wasn't paying any attention to what Missy was doing in front of him, so when she stopped he ran into her.

"What wrong?" He noticed that she was gripping the wall with one hand and her head with another.

She straightened up quickly. "Nothing." She spat. "Now, let's keep going."

The walked a while longer, taking turns here and there, but for the most part, they just traveled down long hallways.

Finally, the reached another solid door and Missy knocked.

"What? Who is it?" Bellowed a man's voice from inside.

"It's Missy, Boss."

"Come in." Missy opened the door a crack. "Don't let him in." Boss said soon after woman entered his room. She turned to Jack, nodded and then shut the door…but not all the way.

Jack knew it was morally wrong to eavesdrop on other peoples' conversations but…it was regarding is well being. So, the doctor propped himself up against the door and listened closely.

"What am I supposed to do with him?" Missy asked.

"Take him to see all of them." Boss sounded annoyed.

There was a long silence. "He asked a lot of questions. What do I do about that?" Missy's voice shook. Was she afraid of this 'Boss'?

"Well, I don't know…little miss know it all…what _do_ you do about it?"

"I-I…d-don't th-thin..k…"

"That's right…_you_ don't think. You let me think for you. _Missy_, you don't have any idea how much trouble we're in do you?" Boss's voice was rising. There was another pause on Missy's end of the conversation. "You don't. I do. So let's leave the people who know what to do in charge shall we?"

"Okay."

"Good." Jack couldn't believe that someone like Missy, who in the short time he'd known her had proven herself to be totally independent, was being verbal beaten by the man. Boss went on. "Now, take him to the other's. They're getting worse _you know_."

The door flung open and Missy stormed down the hall. Jack didn't have the mind to ask her what was wrong so he just followed her to where ever it was that she was taking him to.

………

Night had fallen at camp. Kate sat in front of a fire by herself. Sayid had helped her set up a search party for Jack. It helped put her at ease but there was something about the whole situation that wasn't…easy.

Kate felt totally drained from the day's events. The search was to commence in the morning and Kate was tired but she couldn't bring herself to sleep. This whole thing was going to make her sick but frankly, she didn't care.

Someone sat down beside her. It was Rose. Kate smirked then returned her gaze to the blazing yellow flames in front of her.

There was a long comfortable silence before Rose said anything. "Honey…I'm so sorry about Jack. I had no idea that's what you were asking me when you were looking for him this morning."

"It's alright. Not even I knew that what I was doing." Kate shook her head.

"I know how close you two were getting." Rose smiled to herself. "Baby, I just wanted to let you know…if you even need to talk, I'm here. I'll send Bernard off on a fishing trip and you and me will just sit together. How does that sound?"

Little did Rose know that while she was giving this little speech, Kate's eyes were slowing filling with tears. She dared not cry in front of someone but her just confirmed the fact that she did care for Jack. More that she had thought.

Jack had become her best friend on the island. He knew things about her that no one else did. He seemed care about how she felt. He opened up to her when he couldn't to anybody else.

Yes, Jack was her best friend. And who knows…maybe she was falling for him too.

**A/N: Okay guys. I had someone ask me to make the chapters longer. Can do. I'll experiment with length until you like it. But truly…is this better? Anywho…thanks to everybody who reviewed. Ya'll are awesome! It means so much to me. And guys…don't be afraid to give me criticism. I do this for the love of writing and if I'm not good at it…then what's the point? R and R!**


	6. Chapter 6

The door swung open with a loud creek. Jack had followed Missy all the way down the hall again and to another one of the solid doors.

He walked in slowly, carefully; he tried to be precautious as to what was inside.

Missy just traipsed in like it was no big deal. She looked back at him. "This way." She nodded toward the room.

The room was white with row of beds along each wall. Most of the beds were filled with people. The small space was eerily quiet.

"What is this?" The doctor asked.

"This…" Missy started. "This is our sick room."

Jack looked around. There was a good amount of people in the room. Something in him was unsettled by all of this.

"All of these people are sick?"

"Yes. And your job is to make them better."

"But I can't …"

"You are a doctor, aren't you?" Missy gave him a stern look. "That's the reason we have you. So, you can fix them."

Jack was silent for a moment before going over to the bed closest to him. He leaned over and took the person's pulse. It was weak.

………

"This is where we were." Shannon stated frankly. She was still shaken up by the whole thing. Fear still carried in her eyes.

"Are you sure?" Kate asked gently.

Shannon nodded then walked back to where the rest of the group was.

Kate could tell she felt badly about everything. Her body language said it all. The blonde stood with her arms crossed and her shoulders rounded and she never met anyone's eyes with her own. She couldn't.

"Alright." The brunette yelled to get everyone's attention. Sayid had done a pretty good job of getting people together. They had a fairly large group to help them. "We need to split off into small teams and go separate ways. I'd say by the looks of things maybe five or six in on a team would be plenty." Then Kate went up to join her own team.

Her little pod of people consisted of Sayid, herself, Sawyer, Shannon, and some other man Kate knew only well enough to know that his name was Jonathan.

Everyone looked around for a moment as people started off in their own directions.

"Shall we." Sawyer said sarcastically, taking the lead.

Kate just stared at him as he walked a ways in front of them, and then turned around to yell, "Y'all coming?"

The collection of people took off after him at a slow pace.

Shannon approached Kate with vigilance. "Kate?" She said to get her attention.

"What?" Kate stopped to acknowledge her.

The blonde caught up and walked beside her. "I just wanted to let you know that I feel really bad about all of this." She swallowed hard as Kate just glared at her.

It wasn't a disdainful glare like she had expected; it was just…a look. "I'm sorry for what I did. And I'm sorry I…" she trialed off. She took a deep breath and exhaled. "I'm sorry for everything, and I hope that there's some way you could forgive me."

Kate's expression melted. She smiled slightly at the girl's apology. "It's okay. You don't need to apologize. You didn't make those men take Jack." Her dark curls bounced in her face as she turned towards Shannon. "It means a lot to me that you care though."

Kate left Shannon's side to trudge towards the front of the group. All while swarms of thought raced through her head. 'Jack…' she thought. 'Pleas be okay.'

………

Jack pulled his stool up to yet another person. He'd been working all night, taking stats on everyone and observing their condition. Whatever sickness was plaguing them…they all had it.

The doctor turned down the thin white blanket of his next patient only to be met with shock.

The girl lying in the bed bore a striking resemblance to Kate.

Her dark hair framed her small pale face. 'Kate…' Jack thought. 'Oh my god…Kate.' He hadn't thought about her once since he was brought to this place.

Jack wondered what she was doing. Whether she was scared, or somber, or if she even cared if he was gone. Was she looking for him?

He hoped she was because he'd be the first one out looking for her if she was ever missing. He found himself caring for the girl in the bed a little more than the other patients. He'd take her on as a project.

Jack told himself, if he had to save only one person it'd be the girl right here…right in front of him. He put the name 'Katie' at the top of his observation sheet for the time being. He'd have to learn her name later but he was sure that 'Katie' suited her nicely.

'A beautiful name…for a beautiful girl,' he thought.

**A/N: Sorry about the wait guys. I'm having a bad case of writers block. I know this isn't the best chapter but I just needed to get thought it. Now, I think I know what I'm going to do for the next chapter. I'm also going to have a contest. I need a name for 'Katie' but I can't find any that I really like. When you submit your review leave a name or a few if you like that you think should be 'Katie's' real name. Thanks for reading. Please review!**


	7. Author's Note

**So, I've gotten great names from all of you and I'm thankful that you guys helped me out. Now I have narrowed it down to three names and I want you guys to vote again. I figure if you're reading the story…you might as well have some say in it, right?**

**Katie**

**Lindsey**

**Hailey**

**Thanks guys for being so supportive. I'll have the next chapter up by Wednesday! Whoo-hoo…just in time for the new Lost episode! Love you all!**

**Your friend, Katy**


	8. Chapter 7

Shannon smoothed a piece of flyaway hair out of her face. They had stopped for the night to make camp and she was glad. All the walking they had been doing was really taking its toll on her. She sighed firmly.

"What's the matter Sticks? Feel bad about feeding the doc to the others?" Sawyer sat down beside her.

"No. I mean…yeah, but I didn't 'feed' him to them. They took him." She gazed into the fire. She was way passed pathetic. She'd moved on anger now.

Sawyer snickered at her. "What?" She asked out of curiosity.

"Nothing." He answered giving her a dimpled grin and a look. Shannon returned it.

………

Jack had finished 'looking' at everyone in the sick room. He was now leaning against the wall between 'Katie's' bed and the man sleeping next to her.

It'd been hours since Missy had dropped him off there and he was starting to wonder if she was coming back for him or not. He exhaled as he closed his eyes letting himself go to the darkness of sleep.

"_Jack!" He flinched a little. "Jack!" Someone yelled again. This time his eyes fluttered open to see Kate standing in front of him. He looked around, shocked that she was here. He was still in the sick room._

"_Lindsey what are you doing here?" What had he just said? Why did he call her Lindsey? She looked like Kate._

_He helped himself up with the wall behind him and watched the expression on Kate's face carefully._

"_How do you know my name?" She asked. That's when Jack realized…that wasn't Kate's voice. It was higher pitched than Kate's was. Well, his Kate at least. _

"_Excuse me?" He took a step towards the girl. "Lindsey?" He asked again calling her 'Lindsey'._

'_Where did I get Lindsey from?' He asked himself. _

"_How do you know my name?" Lindsey asked again with a hint of fear in her voice. "How do you know my name?" She finally yelled._

Jack jumped awake, startled by the dream he had just had. He sat up right and heard a small groan from the bed next to him. Katie's bed.

He kneeled at her side watching her closely as her eyes fluttered open.

She blinked a few times as she studied him. Then she screamed.

Jack jumped, shushing her franticly. He didn't want the other others to wake up.

"Wh-who…are you?" She asked in the same high-pitched voice he had heard in his dream.

"I'm Jack…I'm a doctor. Can you tell me what you name is?" He spoke low and quiet.

"My name?" She repeated. "I'm Lindsey." She told him cautiously from behind her white sheet and thick feather pillow.

Jack took a good look at her. She did resemble Kate but there were some differences. She had dark curly hair like Kate but Lindsey's was only about shoulder length. She had dark blue eyes but they were glazed over with fever. Her cheeks were red with the sickness as well and her tan skin glittered with sweat.

"I'm sorry I scared you." The doctor apologized.

Lindsey shook her head. "It's okay." She coughed weakly still watching Jack out of the corner of her eye.

Jack wrote something down on a clipboard then looked back at the woman in bed. "Can you tell me how you feel right now?"

"I don't get it?" She told him hoarsely.

"You're sick. Can you tell me what feels like what?" She nodded.

"Umm…My head hurts all the time, but that's probably because I don't eat."

"Why don't you eat?" Jack asked curiously.

"I can't keep anything down. I'm tired a lot. I've got a fever. Everything just aches." Lindsey shrugged. "What else do you need to know?"

The dark haired man made a face and shook his head. "Nah. I'm good for now."

Lindsey looked around at all of the other people who were still asleep. "How did you get in here? Don't they lock the door?" She brought her legs around into and Indian position and laid against the wall behind her.

"A woman…Missy let me in." He was still writing on his clipboard.

"Missy? Oh, you mean Michelle." She exclaimed in realization.

"Michelle?" Jack finally looked up.

"Yeah. Her name is Michelle but the boss calls her Missy 'cause she's so smart mouthed." Lindsey looked at Jack. He was handsome. "I wonder how she's doing? I haven't seen her since I was put in here."

"She's fine. Or at least I think she is. I haven't seen her since yesterday." He got up and hung the clipboard on the end of Lindsey's bed. Her eyes followed him.

"Where are you from Jack? You're not one of ours."

The doctor looked over his shoulder at her. "I'll tell you later. You should probably get some sleep." She nodded and gathered her blanket over her thin body as she lay back down to close her eyes.

Jack took it upon himself to get out of the sick room since it looked like Missy wasn't coming back for him.

After making sure Lindsey was asleep he crept over to the giant white, metal door and turned the knob slowly, only to be met with the resistance of a lock.

'Damn.' He thought. He had to get out of here and soon.

**A/N: So Lindsey won guys. Thanks for everybody who particapated. This is kind of a slow chapter but something is coming up so just y'all wait and see! Hope you all enjoyed. Please review!**


	9. Chapter 8

"What are you starring at?" Kate asked questioningly as Jonathan watched from over the morning fire.

"Nothing." He smiled politely. "You just remind me of someone I know."

Kate nodded in response. She didn't know Jonathan very well so she didn't know whether or not she had just been complimented.

Jonathan was kind of a big guy. Not tall necessarily…just broad you could say. He was an older man possibly in his mid forties. He stood just above Kate in height but was probably double her weight.

Kate glanced at him again and sighed to herself. There was something different about him.

000

Jack opened his eyes. He'd been asleep? How long? He didn't remember falling asleep.

He propped himself up. He was leaning on the wall next to the door. He remembered trying to unlock it the night before but…everything was just fuzzy after that.

The doctor brought his hands up to his face gently his forehead and his eyes.

"Doctor!" A man, fairly thin, in his early twenties rushed up to him. "Doctor…you may want to look at Lindsey. She's really bad this morning."

Jack jumped up a Lindsey's name. When he stood up he could see people surrounding her bed.

"Hey. Come on…give her room to breath." He pushed people back as he approached her.

"Jack." He heard he mumbled.

"What Lindsey…I'm right here. Can you tell me what's going on? What hurts?" He kneeled on the floor in front of her. Jack touched the back of his hand to her forehead. Her fever was getting worse.

"Jack…it h-hurts." She confessed in a pathetic voice. Tears clung to the lining of her eyes.

"I know it hurts but can you tell me what happened to make you feel this way?" He stroked her hair to calm her down.

"I-I don't know. I ate this morning a-and…" She trailed off. "I was sick again and I-I…it just hurts!" Her body racked with a sob.

"Okay, okay. It's okay." He turned to the people standing behind him. "Do you have any medical supplies in here? Or cold water?"

The others just looked at each other. "We don't know." One of them answered.

They were useless. Lindsey needed immediate care. Jack ran back over to the door.

"SOMEBODY HELP! OPEN UP PLEASE!" He screamed as he pounded on the door with a balled fist.

He was silently praying for someone to hear him. Lindsey couldn't die. He wouldn't let her.

000

"Okay." Kate sighed to herself. They had just come upon a fairly small cliff they couldn't avoid.

"Do you think we should climb it?" Sayid asked.

"Do you think we should?" She asked him back.

Sayid looked at her with gentle eyes. "That all depends. How badly do you want to find him?"

Kate looked at him and smirked. "Start climbing." She told him.

"That's what I thought." He smiled to himself as he took hold of one of the roots hanging down the side of the ledge.

Kate followed after Sayid, and Jonathan followed her. Then it was Sawyer's turn.

"Come on, Princess." He pushed Shannon up onto the vine.

The blonde smiled at her new nickname. It'd gone from 'Sticks' to 'Princess' and she had to admit she liked this one better.

000

"SOMEBODY! ANYBODY! JUST PLEASE OPEN THE DOOR!" Jack was still pounding on the door. No one had come yet.

He hit the door one last time with all of his might then cursed under his breath.

Jack looked around at all of the people that inhabited the sick room. Some were in shock, others were afraid of him. His eyes just kept traveling. That's when the idea hit him.

He went over to one of the beds and pushed the mattress off of it; the sheets and pillow went flying.

Just as he thought. The bed was put together with support rods. His eyes traveled over the ladder like structure that held the bed together with great care.

Then he put his foot down and added pressure, which easily bentone of therods. He stompped on it, bending it more. He just kept hitting it until it broke off completely.

He picked up the metal piece quickly and went back over to the door.

The frantic physician aimed carefully and struck the doorknob with the pipe he held.

The handle came off with little trouble.

He stuck a finger in the hole where the knob had once been and felt the lock on the other side. He could unlock it.

"Does anyone have anything like a hair pin?" He asked, not making eye contact. No one answered. "DOES ANYONE HAVE A HAIR PIN?" He asked again with more force.

A woman jumped and began to fiddle with the side of her head. She pulled out a long black bobby pin.

"Thanks." Jack said quietly as she handed him the device. He kneeled and started picking the lock from the inside.

He didn't know if this was going to work or not but he had to try. He had to save her.

His nimble fingers work quickly but carefully.

Luckily it paid off as the door cracked open with a soft click.


	10. Chapter 9

He was starring at her again. She was starting to get a little creeped out by him, in fact.

Jonathan hadn't quit 'looking' at Kate since he had told her she reminded him of someone. Now she could feel his eyes boring into her back and she didn't like it at all.

Kate fidgeted under his gaze. Who was this guy?

"Okay everyone. Why don't we take a break? I think we could use some rest." After the announcement she slipped away from the group not only to get away from Jonathan's eyes but also to clear her mind.

What if they didn't find Jack? They had all been gone for two days and they hadn't stumbled upon anything to lead them anywhere. As far as Kate knew they were as far away from him as they were to begin with.

She leaned against one of the tall standing trees and sighed heavily. It was really quiet.

Kate carried her water bottle up to her lips let the cool water run down her throat as she swallowed.

"KATE!" Sayid yelled ripping the brunette out of her thoughts and back into the real world.

At the same time…

They snuck away from the rest of the group together. It wouldn't hurt anyone.

So, Sawyer kissed her again. This was long time coming and now he just had to get it out. She broke the kiss but plunged back in soon enough.

Shannon brought her hands around his neck as his searched her back.

He kissed her again and again. Each one different with the same intensity.

All of the sudden they started to loose their balance. Shannon broke away and held her hands out to catch herself as Sawyer did the same.

The both hit the ground with a loud 'thunk'.

"I don't think mud makes that much noise." Shannon said with some uncertainty.

"No. It doesn't." Sawyer told her seriously; his eyes narrowing.

They both looked down to see a messy 'cover up' of something. The two of them found it confusing that this was the only place in the jungle with mud on the ground. It hadn't rained in a couple of days so the ground should have been dry.

The southern swiped some of the mud away from him to see the shine of something. Sawyer pushed more earth out of the way. What ever it was it was metal. His head whipped up to meet Shannon's apprehensive face.

"We should tell Kate." She nodded.

000

Kate rushed over to the spot from where Sayid had called her. There she found her group covered in mud. Sawyer was kneeling while the rest were standing.

"What's going on?" She asked as she crept forward, wary of what they'd found.

That's when it came into view. It was a giant metal door with a handle on the outside.

"What is it?" She asked eyeing the thing.

"We don't know but we thought you would want to see it first." Sayid explained.

"Can we open it?" Kate took a step forward.

Sawyer stood and took the handle with both hands thenthrust it open nosily. It was dark but there was a staircase leading down to and unknown location.

Everyone looked around at each other. Tension held in the air.

"Where's Jonathan?" Someone inquired.

000

"Missy!" Jack yelled as her ran down the never-ending hallways of wherever he was. "Missy!"

He had to find her. She'd know where everything was. Missy could tell him what to do.

"MISSY!" He shouted again in desperation.

"She can't hear you Jack." The doctor stopped at the sound of his name. There was a man standing in lobby-like area at the end of thepassageway.

"What?" He asked catching his breath.

"You heard me. Missy can't hear you." Jack knew the man. He was this 'Boss' person that everyone talked about. Why did he look familiar?

"Why can't she hear me?" Jack started to worry.

Boss's eyes shone in the dimly lit hall. A smirk played on his lips. "Because she's dead."

**A/N: Well, this is my Easter gift to all of you readers out there. I want everybody to have a fun and safe holiday...EAT LOTS OF CANDY! Oh, I didn't even realize this but next chapter is the end guys! It makes me sad. I'm really satisfied with how it all turns out so I hope all of you like it! Well, review! Oh, and I'm accepting challenges for my next story. If you any of you want to submit something…go for it! Read my profile for details.**


	11. Chapter 10

"I don't know where he went. We all just kind of took off." Sawyer cracked. "How do we know _he _didn't?"

"We don't." Sayid realized. He looked at Kate. "He shouldn't be far. We'll leave the door open and our packs on the stair just incase he comes back. But for now I think we should move on without him."

The other members of the group nodded. Kate looked at each of them.

"Okay." She agreed.

The brunette took the first few steps down the staircase into the dark abyss, followed by Sayid, and the rest, behind him.

Kate didn't know what she expected to find down there but it had to be something worthwhile. People didn't just leave doors in the ground without having them leading somewhere, or protecting something.

She was frightened and her heart was racing but she just knew they were doing the right thing.

She was going to find Jack.

000

"Dead?" Jack asked with uncertainty and shock all mixed into one.

"Yes…dead." Boss repeated. "Boy, there was nothing you could do to stop it. Don't feel badly like I know you do."

He was right. Jack did feel badly. He had noticed something was wrong with her when they had first met but he didn't say anything. If he had stopped her and asked a few question, maybe she'd still be here.

The doctor could feel is anger rising. It was all coming to him. Everything that was going on. Missy, the sick room, why Lindsey was in such poor condition. And Jack also realized that he knew Boss.

"What's your real name?" He asked after moments of silence.

Boss looked at him with a quizzical stare. Then he smiled and chuckled. "You're the first person to ask me that. I don't know why other people always call me 'Boss'?" The man put his hands on his hips. "To answer your question…it's Jonathan."

It hit him.

"Jonathan." The doctor repeated. "You're from the beach. You're one of us." He thought out loud between the two of them.

"No, I'm not." Jonathan said with all seriousness. "I'm not one of your kind Jack."

The man from flight 815 nodded. "You are killing them aren't you." It was more of a statement that a question. Jack knew he was killing the rest of the others.

"Yes." The 'other' man replied with a fiery gaze. "How did you know?"

Jack stared right back with the same intensity. "I suspected it, but I wasn't positive until I saw Lindsey this morning." He took a step forward. "You're poisoning them. With what?"

"What?"

"What are you putting in their food?" Jack's voice was rising.

There was a pregnant pause before he spoke. "Mercury." Jonathan answered simply.

Jack just shook his head. Mercury was one of the most lethal elements known to man. They were all going to die. Everyone in the sick room was going to die sooner or later from the poison.

"You know…I liked Lindsey. I'm sorry she had to be the first." Jonathan sighed and refocused on Jack.

"What about Missy? She died before Lindsey."

For that, the dark haired doctor received a heated glare from the man standing opposite him. "She knew to much."

Jack was discussed. Why was he murdering all of these people? Why would he do this?

Confused and unclear Jack asked. "Why?"

"Why what?" Jonathan didn't understand.

"Why are you killing them? What did they do to deserve this?" He said straining to keep his anger under control.

Jonathan took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Jack, I'm going to tell you a story." He turned around and made his way to the wall behind him. He sat down against the concrete barrier with a noisy exhale. "We crashed on this island just like you did. Only, we weren't on a plan, we were on an ocean liner. You know, one of those fancy shmancy floating hotel things?"

Jack nodded with new interest.

"Well, there was a bad storm and we ended up here. There was a good handful of us. A lot of adults; some kids. Things seemed pretty okay besides the fact that no one was looking for us. I was proclaimed leader of everything. All the hikes into the woods were run by me, and I was in charge of keeping the peace, and making sure we had food and water for the next day."

'Sounds like me,' Jack thought to himself. "Go on." He encouraged.

"That's it. That's how we lived for long time. Years actually. Then we found this place. And there was a guy just like me. A guy who was in charge of all these people…who were dying. And you know what? He was the one killing them all."

Jack maintained a look of disgust through all of this. "You still haven't answered my question. Why?"

"I'm getting there." Jonathan told him somewhat annoyed. "What I was going to tell you is that…that man told me the same story I'm telling you. We're the islands protectors and every once and a while they bring in some new recruits. I still don't know everything about this place and frankly, I don't think I was meant to. That's why you're here."

"So, you're telling me that you are murdering these people because someone told you that you had to." Jack summed.

Jonathan nodded. "Yep. And when the time comes. I'll kill myself along with them all." He paused and looked at Jack with wise eyes. "It's all a dark twisted game, Jack. We just players who can't figure out the rules."

The dark headed doctor leaned against the wall behind him but didn't follow Jonathan's suit by sitting down. This was a lot of information all at once.

"Then why did you need me?" He asked still at a complete loss.

"We didn't. Someone wanted a doctor…I knew you were so I brought you here." Jonathan sighed. "I don't want them to know that I'm killing them."

Silence settled between the two.

"Go be with Lindsey. I'm sure the girl is scared to death." He told the other man, not realizing the irony of his statement.

Jack looked at him with sick eyes. Then he just nodded slowly.

000

"Where are we?" Shannon asked holding on to Sawyer's arm.

"I don't know. It looks like an addition to the hatch, maybe." Kate explained. "Look this has the same concrete walls and the piping system runs along the ceiling like it does in the hatch."

There was only silence as the group's response.

The brunette leader of the group led them all down a hallway - a very long hallway, and occasionally they would come across a door but dared not enter.

She had no idea where she was going but something told Kate what turns to take and what doors to open. She was following her heart more than her gut at this point.

Shannon and Sawyer were quietly talking to one another in the back as Kate's thoughts drifted off.

"Shh!" Sayid suddenly interrupted. The couple was quiet and they all listened intently for what seemed like a minutes.

That's when they heard it. A voice.

The fugitive once again ran. Only this time she was following something; running towards it instead of away from it.

She turned the corner swiftly, just in time to see Jonathan.

"Jonathan!" She gasped. He looked at her with sorry eyes.

000

"Lindsey?" Jack asked as he kneeled in front of her like he'd done only an hour before. "Lindsey, are you awake?"

The rest of the others crowded around her as soon as Jack walked in, knowing that something was wrong if the doctor was back.

"Yeah." She said weakly. "It h-hurts." She whispered, barely audible.

"I know." He told her and wishing he could do something to help ease her pain. Jack just slipped his hand in hers and stroked her hair, trying to make her comfortable.

There was a long silence where only the breathing of others could be heard, while Lindsey rested.

There was a clatter coming from across the room. It wouldn't have been loud had the room not been so still but the sound of walking startled them all.

Jack's head snapped up to see the only person he had wanted to see in three days. Kate.

Sayid followed her as well as Sawyer and Shannon. He soon realized they were here to take him home.

His friends didn't say a word. They just stood there waiting to see what would happen.

Finally she spoke. "Is she pretty?" The brunette headed girl in the bed asked, her eyes closed.

"Who?" Jack asked, returning his gaze to the dying woman.

"You said…I l-looked like s-some…one you knew. Is sh-she pretty?" Lindsey was weak and her breathing was labored. It wouldn't be long.

Jack lifted his head, still holding Lindsey's hand, and looked at Kate. "Yeah." He answered simply. "She's beautiful."

The corners of the Lindsey's lips turned upward. One, lone tear found its way to her cheek.

Then her grip loosened on Jack's hand…and she was gone.

It took Jack a second to realize what had just happened but he still let go of her hand and carefully laid it on her stomach.

After another hushed moment he rose, slowly and found his way to Kate.

She looked at him with sad eyes as if to say 'I'm so sorry.' But he didn't want her pity. He just wanted her.

Then with careful, deliberate moves he traced her jaw line with his fingers before taking her whole face in his hands and bring his lips down upon hers.

She took him willingly. She was so happy he was alive and well that tears stung her eyes.

He broke the kiss and laid his forehead on hers like he had before.

Tears pricked at the corner of his own eyes as he whispered to her, "I love you."

She waited so long to hear that. The tears fell with a smile. They fell daintily onto her cheeks and she whispered back to him, "Let's go home."

**A/N: That's the end. Thanks for being such great readers. You guys totally rock! This story wouldn't be here without any of you. This fic is yours! Review and I'm serious about the whole challenge thing…I don't have an idea of what to do next! You've made it fun! Love you all!**

**Katy**


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